A place of childrens' stories, funny blogs, unasked-for advice, stuff I've learned that might save you time and trouble, the perfect marriage (?), and other interesting stuff.

Easy-Peasey Stuff

It took me years of listening to people a lot smarter than I was to find out that there is always an easy way and a hard way to do most anything. You’d think that these things would be intuitive, but most are not.

For example, I learned the hard way that when cooking, it is a lot easier to clean up as you go along. Before I got interested in cooking, I would watch my mother prepare a meal. After each task, such as chopping carrots, she would first dispose of all the peelings and clean up. By the time supper was ready, the kitchen was spotless and mess-less.

So now when I cook, I clean up as I go. All vegetable peelings go in a large container; when full, the contents go into our compost heap. Just by taking that little amount of time to clean up saves me from having a huge mess to tackle after dinner (when I’m too tired to do it, but have energy enough to gripe about it).

The same goes for my personal dictum: “if you use up something, replace it immediately.” This goes for that last sheet of toilet paper on the roll—put a new roll on the spindle or face the consequences….

Then there is that one drawer of obscure kitchen-y stuff such as the can opener, tongs, mallets, measuring spoons, small spatulas, chopsticks, zester, egg slicer, etc. When you find what you were looking for, use it, clean it and then put it back where it belongs. (Do not for one second decide it doesn’t matter where it goes—IT DOES.)

When you are getting low on something such as dish soap, steel wool pads, paper towels, vitamins, etc., do not wait until something runs out. Here’s how to keep ahead of things: 1) keep a note up on the refrigerator of “Stuff We Are Running Out Of.” 2) *Take the note with you when shopping.

Then there is the pet food situation. We have four cats, and although none of them wear watches, they know when it’s time to eat. If they are fed in the morning and their food container is empty afterwards, do not wait—fill it up right away before you forget.

Believe me, you do not want to be running around filling up the food containers later on in the day when four pairs of eyes are staring at you and all the cats are meowing loudly because they are not-so-patiently waiting for their dinner.

So, there you have it—some easy-peasey stuff to keep you from losing your mind. Don’t wait for a crisis to happen; be proactive. You don’t want to be that person who forgot to buy toilet paper, cat food or that one ingredient you needed for supper—and supper time is right now.

Be proactive, not reactive. Easy-peasey, lemon-squeezey!

*This simple step will save you money and your sanity. If you stop at the store without the note, you will probably remember some of the stuff you need, but not all. Having the note with you keeps you from buying “hungry” purchases like that tempting box of chocolate-dipped Oreos or deluxe canned crab. Take the note.